Aiden's eyes were hidden behind his sunglasses. He studied Maria's expression before saying softly, "Anya, this is my sister-in-law, Maria."

"Sis Maria." Anya said, "This is a gift I have prepared for you. I hope you like it."

​​

"No need to be overly polite. We are all family. Is all this for me?" Apart from the bouquet and perfume brought by Anya, Maria saw Abdi also carrying some charcoal.

"Anya makes perfume for you and she picks these roses in her own flower garden." Aiden said.

"Thank you for the gift. Come in. Father has been waiting for you." Maria immediately welcomed them.

"Anya, I'll help Nico in the park. Come in quickly." Tara gave Anya an encouraging gesture and nodded her head back.

Aiden gripped her hand gently and led her into the living room as if nothing had happened.

From inside, a voice was heard, "Who is waiting for them? I'm not waiting for them." Bima said coldly.

Maria gave the flower bouquet from Anya to the servant and asked the servant to find a vase. Then, she approached Anya and warmly took her arm, "Don't be afraid, Anya. Father is tough, but he actually really loves Aiden." Maria said.

Anya was touched by Maria's warmth. Even though she was a powerful figure in this house, Maria was still very friendly. She had an elegant and charming personality, but she still looked cheerful and easy to approach.

Nico's cheerful personality must have come from his mother.

"Father, Aiden came with Anya and brought a present for you. Isn't she a very understanding girl?" Maria said, smiling.

Abdi gave the bag he was holding to one of the servants, "This is a cake made by Madame."

"Who needs a gift from her? A cheap gift like that, who wants it?" Bima didn't even look at Anya's gift.

Aiden, who had been silent for a while, suddenly said coldly, "Better to keep your mouth shut than to say unpleasant things to the ear."

Anya's eyes widened when she heard this. She immediately grabbed Aiden's sleeve, trying to tell him it's better for them to just be quiet.

She didn't want Aiden and his father's relationship to get worse because of her.

"Is that how you protect that woman?" Bima glared at Anya, "You are more than thirty years old but you have instead chosen a woman who hasn't graduated from college to be your wife. You chose a very young wife. You are blind and don't know if she secretly went to find another man."

Anya was surprised to hear that Aiden was over thirty years old. During this time, she never asked and found out about Aiden's age.

She thought Aiden was twenty-eight years old from his appearance. Was Aiden really that old?

Wait, wait ... What was she thinking?

This was not the time to think about Aiden's age. Her father-in-law didn't like her at all, why was she even busy thinking about her husband's age?

Aiden embraced Anya's body and brought his wife's body closer to him, "I have the right to choose my own wife, someone who will spend all her life with me. She will never betray me."

"A lifetime? I don't believe in a woman who can seduce her sister's fiancée." Bima looked at Anya with disgust.

"I've been with her long before that. It doesn't matter if you believe it or not, I definitely like her. I trust her." Aiden tried hard to protect Anya.

Bima could only shake his head. It's no use talking to his son. Seeing Aiden's attitude like this, he knew that his son was adamant about living together with Anya. Bima had already guessed that Aiden would defend Anya with all his might, so he had already prepared himself.

He took a document he had prepared and threw it on the coffee table in front of him, "Anya. If you still want to be with Aiden, please sign this document."

"What are you doing, Dad?" Maria asked in surprise.

Bima looked at Aiden, but he was still talking to Anya. "I know my son is confused because of you, but I'm not blind. The contract is an agreement so that you can maintain your attitude. Once you act outrageously or do something that damages the good name of the Atmajaya Family and Aiden's name, you must immediately leave the Atmajaya Family without bringing a penny."

"I didn't bring her to this place to be humiliated like this." Aiden's eyes were sharp and his voice was sinister, "Anya, let's go home."

Anya took her hand away from Aiden and refused to go with him, "Aiden, we just came. It's not polite to go home right away."

"Then? You want to stay here and let this person embarrass you?" Aiden looked at her with pain. For some reason, his heart hurt even more when his father insulted Anya.

"Aiden, your father did this because he cares for you. He cares for you and wants to protect you." Anya said.

Aiden already knew what Anya wanted to do and said sharply, "Should he protect his son by hurting someone else's daughter? I will never let anyone hurt you, even if that person is my father! I won't let you sign that contract!"

Anya laughed, but tears welled up in her eyes. Those tears weren't sad tears because she was humiliated when she first came to meet her father-in-law, but tears because Aiden valued her so much, "Aiden, I'm quite satisfied with your words. I believe you care for me. I will sign that contract and be with you for the rest of my life. Let me sign it."

"Anya, don't you understand? I don't want you to sign it." Aiden frowned.

"If you don't want to sign it, how can I trust you? Maybe one day you will leave Aiden with his treasure." Bima said.

"Aiden, I signed it because I wanted to spend my whole life with you. Don't stop me." Anya smiled, but still, her heart ached a little.

Due to her low status and rumors out there, the Atmajaya Family didn't believe her. She was just a lowly woman in their eyes.

But she really wanted to live with Aiden forever. What's the use of money? She didn't need money for herself. She didn't need money to spend. She also planned to return the money for her mother's medical treatment once she got it together.

She just wanted love. She wanted Aiden's love for her.

"You stupid. Signing a contract like this, don't you feel hurt?" Aiden hugged Anya tightly.

"If you treat me better, I will not feel sad." Anya answered with a smile.

"There's no need to sign it. If you want to leave me someday, it must be because of my bad attitude. I'll give you enough money to live in peace for the rest of your life."

Aiden took the contract off the table and tore it up, "Anya is my wife. Don't embarrass her with this meaningless piece of paper. Insulting her would mean the same as insulting me. I will not let anyone hurt her, even if you are my father."

"In the past, when you didn't want to pay ransom when I was kidnapped, that day you died in my heart. I don't have a father like you. And this time you disappoint me again." Aiden took Anya's hand and turned towards the door, walking out of the room.

When Maria married Ardan and became part of the Atmajaya Family, Aiden was still a child. So you could say Maria was Aiden's mother figure. She saw Aiden's development from an early age and really understood his nature.

Seeing Aiden angry this time and wanting to take Anya home, Maria immediately followed him.

"Aiden, take Anya to my studio. I just made a new painting. If there is something you like, I will give it as your wedding gift." Maria immediately stretched out her hand and held Anya's hand.

"Aiden..." Anya also tried to beg Aiden not to get angry.

"We're going back!" Aiden said coldly.

Maria looked back and saw Bima not following them. She lowered her voice and said, "Aiden, even if you're okay, think about Anya. How could she leave without eating first?"